Thir13en Ghosts

Ok, I found this movie to be a little over the normal for a horror flick. I rank some of the scenes up there with "The Cell". I mean there was some pretty graphic scenes to this, and some very dazzling effects.

The breakdown:

Uncle Cyrus(F. Murray Abraham) collects ghosts, in fact as the movie opens, that's what he is in the process of doing. He has a team of people helping him, and in this team is a pshyic(Matthew Lillard) who is foggy on the reason why this guy wants these ghosts, all he knows is that there is money involved. This ghost they are in the process of catching is a killer, and butchers the team of "ghostbusters" while one team member gets trapped in the cube that holds the ghost. One thing leads to another and Uncle Cyrus gets killed trying to capture the thirteenth ghost.

Enter Uncle Cyrus' nephew(Tony Shalhoub), who has no idea why his Uncle Cyrus, who he has only talked to twice, is leaving everything to him. Cyrus gives his nephew the key to his house, which was a very spectacular set if I might say so. So Arthur moves his daughter, son, nanny, into this house not aware of what his uncle did, or why this house is so bizarre(latin writing on walls, walls made out of glass). Cyrus' lawyer takes them to the house and they arrive with a "utility worker"(Lillard) trying to get in, giving a lousy excuse for why he's there. Arthur(Shalhoub) pops the key in the slot, and odd things start to happen, a minute goes by maybe, and the doors begin to open. When the key was turned it started a clock, which powered the house up. Now, they're all shocked and amazed at this house, while Lillard's character is trying to find the basement(where a rumored lump sum of money is stashed).

Now, we all know how lawyers are(well some of us), they like to get business done and get out. So naturally the lawyer is rushing Arthur to sign the papers, and while this is going on, Rafkin(Lillard) is stumbling around the basement area looking for the loot. What he doesn't realize is this is where all the ghosts he help catch are stashed. Each in their own cell, and all wanting Rafkin's attention, if you forgot, he's the psychic. Rafkin pulls out his glasses that allow him to see the spirits, and he is starting to figure things out. Soon as he realizes what he has come across he rushes back up to get the attention of Arthur who, of course, is a skeptic when it comes to ghosts.

While Rafkin is explaining himself to Arthur the lawyer disapears downstairs in search of the money, and low and behold, he has his own glasses too. He teases one ghost who is nude, commenting on her breasts, and she then attacks the glass(which is soundproof/shatterproof), he goes right to the money and in taking the money from it's spot sets a machine into swing. Thus releasing the ghost in which he teased. She takes it personally of course. He happens to be standing in the middle of a doorway, so it shuts on him splitting him in two. Back to the machine, it is set to release all 12, yes that's right 12, ghosts so that they can power a eye into hell. So one by one the ghosts are released, but not all at once, there's like a time span in between.

While the family and Rafkin are trying to avoid the ghosts, a person who shows herself in the opening scenes arrives on camera once again, mysteriously though. See, when the lawyer tripped the switch, the house started locking up, much like in 1999's "Haunted Hill". So when asked how she got in, she states that, "I got through an opening while the house was shifting." Shifting...WTF!? The house was sealed in the first place, and it wasn't a transformer or anything, it wasn't turning into a giant foot to smash other houses that were better. So when that line was spouted out, I lost a little credit for this movie.

Oh remember the latin writing on the walls? Those are spells to keep the ghosts trapped in. So if they come to a dead in, or a sealed door, they can't do anything. That's how they were kept locked in the house. Kalina(Embeth Davidtz) is the one who enters upon the shifting and has a book that tells the story behind the machine/house in which they are now trapped. This is when Shalhoub finds out that he is the thirteenth ghost and must throw himself in to destroy the machine when all the other ghosts are in allignment to open this eye. So he takes this a little on the dissapointed side, who wouldn't? He also finds out that the fourth ghost is his wife who had died in a house fire 6 months back. He then attacks Rafkin for not telling, and basically for trapping her in the house.

So now, they are trying to avoid a seriously wicked looking ghost that has railroad spikes through his body, a seriously mental ghost that is hellbent on attacking everyone, a naked knife weilding girl, a child with an arrow through his head, a fat guy and his momma(no joke), and a torso wrapped up in reynolds wrap(well that's what it looked like). I know if you count those up, that isn't 12, but I left out some because these were the ones I could remember well.

Ok, I found this movie to be a little over the normal for a horror flick. I rank some of the scenes up there with "The Cell". I mean there was some pretty graphic scenes to this, and some very dazzling effects.

The breakdown:

Uncle Cyrus(F. Murray Abraham) collects ghosts, in fact as the movie opens, that's what he is in the process of doing. He has a team of people helping him, and in this team is a pshyic(Matthew Lillard) who is foggy on the reason why this guy wants these ghosts, all he knows is that there is money involved. This ghost they are in the process of catching is a killer, and butchers the team of "ghostbusters" while one team member gets trapped in the cube that holds the ghost. One thing leads to another and Uncle Cyrus gets killed trying to capture the thirteenth ghost.

Enter Uncle Cyrus' nephew(Tony Shalhoub), who has no idea why his Uncle Cyrus, who he has only talked to twice, is leaving everything to him. Cyrus gives his nephew the key to his house, which was a very spectacular set if I might say so. So Arthur moves his daughter, son, nanny, into this house not aware of what his uncle did, or why this house is so bizarre(latin writing on walls, walls made out of glass). Cyrus' lawyer takes them to the house and they arrive with a "utility worker"(Lillard) trying to get in, giving a lousy excuse for why he's there. Arthur(Shalhoub) pops the key in the slot, and odd things start to happen, a minute goes by maybe, and the doors begin to open. When the key was turned it started a clock, which powered the house up. Now, they're all shocked and amazed at this house, while Lillard's character is trying to find the basement(where a rumored lump sum of money is stashed).

Now, we all know how lawyers are(well some of us), they like to get business done and get out. So naturally the lawyer is rushing Arthur to sign the papers, and while this is going on, Rafkin(Lillard) is stumbling around the basement area looking for the loot. What he doesn't realize is this is where all the ghosts he help catch are stashed. Each in their own cell, and all wanting Rafkin's attention, if you forgot, he's the psychic. Rafkin pulls out his glasses that allow him to see the spirits, and he is starting to figure things out. Soon as he realizes what he has come across he rushes back up to get the attention of Arthur who, of course, is a skeptic when it comes to ghosts.

While Rafkin is explaining himself to Arthur the lawyer disapears downstairs in search of the money, and low and behold, he has his own glasses too. He teases one ghost who is nude, commenting on her breasts, and she then attacks the glass(which is soundproof/shatterproof), he goes right to the money and in taking the money from it's spot sets a machine into swing. Thus releasing the ghost in which he teased. She takes it personally of course. He happens to be standing in the middle of a doorway, so it shuts on him splitting him in two. Back to the machine, it is set to release all 12, yes that's right 12, ghosts so that they can power a eye into hell. So one by one the ghosts are released, but not all at once, there's like a time span in between.

While the family and Rafkin are trying to avoid the ghosts, a person who shows herself in the opening scenes arrives on camera once again, mysteriously though. See, when the lawyer tripped the switch, the house started locking up, much like in 1999's "Haunted Hill". So when asked how she got in, she states that, "I got through an opening while the house was shifting." Shifting...WTF!? The house was sealed in the first place, and it wasn't a transformer or anything, it wasn't turning into a giant foot to smash other houses that were better. So when that line was spouted out, I lost a little credit for this movie.

Oh remember the latin writing on the walls? Those are spells to keep the ghosts trapped in. So if they come to a dead in, or a sealed door, they can't do anything. That's how they were kept locked in the house. Kalina(Embeth Davidtz) is the one who enters upon the shifting and has a book that tells the story behind the machine/house in which they are now trapped. This is when Shalhoub finds out that he is the thirteenth ghost and must throw himself in to destroy the machine when all the other ghosts are in allignment to open this eye. So he takes this a little on the dissapointed side, who wouldn't? He also finds out that the fourth ghost is his wife who had died in a house fire 6 months back. He then attacks Rafkin for not telling, and basically for trapping her in the house.

So now, they are trying to avoid a seriously wicked looking ghost that has railroad spikes through his body, a seriously mental ghost that is hellbent on attacking everyone, a naked knife weilding girl, a child with an arrow through his head, a fat guy and his momma(no joke), and a torso wrapped up in reynolds wrap(well that's what it looked like). I know if you count those up, that isn't 12, but I left out some because these were the ones I could remember well.